Zilog latest chip company cutting workers and pay

Zilog of San Jose is the latest chip maker to announce job cuts and salary reductions, along with a 23 percent drop in sales for its fiscal 2009 third quarter compared with the year-before quarter and a more than doubling of its net loss.

“The rapid contraction in the global economy and the clouded outlook for demand has caused us to take significant cost reduction actions that included a 35 percent reduction in our worldwide headcount and a 10 percent salary reduction for all of our North America employees along with executive staff.” said Darin Billerbeck, Zilog’s president and chief executive officer.

In August, the company reached a temporary truce with Bryant Riley, its largest shareholder, who wanted to nominate his own director to the board and sought changes to the company’s by-laws.